FORETOKEN have shared a new visualizer for His Riastrad in celebration of the release of their new album, Triumphs, which is out today via Prosthetic Records. His Riastrad‘s video was put together by Aimed&Framed and features art by Howard David Johnson, depicting the Celtic warrior demigod Cú Chulainn – one of many figures and tales that Triumphs explores in Western and Middle Eastern mythology and folklore.

Stream Triumphs via Apple Music | TIDAL | Deezer | Bandcamp and Spotify

Speaking on His Riastrad, FORETOKEN comments: “Today’s the day, Triumphs‘ release date, we’re super excited that the album is finally out for everyone to listen to! The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, which is awesome, so thank you all for listening. It’s doubly cool for us as we were able to sync this up with the release of His Riastrad, which is based on the Irish mythological hero Cú Chulainn.”

Utilizing traditional narratives of myths, legends, and folklore, Triumphs examines the ignored collateral damage of the cost of victory through these established mythos. Stories throughout Triumphs include the tale of the Persian epic poem Shahnameh, written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi (referenced in Serpent King’s Venom), Zhong Kui, the mythological Chinese King of Ghosts (Demon Queller) and Mexico’s The Weeping Woman, La Llorona (The Wraith That Weeps).

Taking musical inspiration from melodic and tech death metal, as well as power, folk and black metal, FORETOKEN’s core sound on Triumphs is bolstered by subtle and captivating use of traditionally Scandinavian, Southeast Asian, and Middle Eastern instruments for atmospheric depth within the album’s 51 minute runtime. Reunited once again with Hannes Grossmann (Hate Eternal, Alkaloid, Obscura, Necrophagist, Blotted Science, and Triptykon) on drums and boasting a guest guitar appearance by The Black Dahlia Murder’s Brandon Ellis on penultimate track A Tyrant Rises As Titans Fall, FORETOKEN’s technical prowess shines through without overpowering any of the nine songs’ rhythmic charge.

Triumphs was penned throughout 2021 by both Steve Redmond (guitar and orchestration) and Dan Cooley (vocals), with the pair settling on eight original compositions and a cover of Naglfar’s I Am Vengeance. Grossmann then commenced drum tracking at his own studio, Mordor Sounds, with guitars recorded by Redmond himself and vocals captured at Trepan Studios by Tony Petrocelly, before mixing and mastering duties were placed in the accomplished hands of Jacob Hansen (Arch Enemy, Fleshgod Apocalypse, The Black Dahlia Murder, and more) at Hansen Studios.

Visually tied together by portrait artist Tomas Honz’s detailed cover painting, depicting a protagonist’s journey in the aftermath of battle, Triumphs aesthetic component is a symbolic embodiment of the duo’s enduring fascination with historial consequence via a folkloric lens. Taking fables and fantasy to extreme sonic heights, FORETOKEN’s Triumphs is as lofty in ambition as it is accomplished in its musicianship and songcraft.

Triumphs tracklist:
1. Revenant of Valor
2. Demon Queller
3. The Wraith That Weeps
4. The Labors
5. Serpent Kings Venom
6. His Riastrad
7. Devil o’ the Sea
8. A Tyrant Rises as Titans Fall
9. I Am Vengeance (Naglfar cover)

FORETOKEN have premiered their new single and its accompanying music video, Serpent King’s Venom, via Distorted Sound. Serpent King’s Venom is the third track to be taken from the Virginia, VA blackened death metal duo’s forthcoming sophomore album, Triumphs, which is set for release via Prosthetic on March 17.

LISTEN TO SERPENT KING’S VENOM AND WATCH THE VIDEO VIA DISTORTED SOUND HERE.
Serpent King’s Venom will be on all streaming platforms on Friday, March 3
Pre-order Triumphs via the Prosthetic webstore here | Pre-order via Bandcamp here.

Speaking on the single premiere, Steve Redmond (guitar and orchestration) comments: “Serpent King’s Venom is one of the groovier tracks on Triumphs. When we approached writing the song, we felt the album needed that slower, heavier change of pace. We wanted it to be dark and heavy but still maintain melody. I think we managed to capture that here. We hope everyone digs this one!”

Vocalist, Dan Cooley adds: “Zahhak, the Serpent King is finally here! When I was researching stories for Triumphs this was one of the first I decided on including because it’s so awesome. It’s also the first song written where there’s a dialogue between two characters (Zahhak and Ahriman). Overall, we think we captured the essence of the story and hope you enjoy the song as much as we do.”

Following their 2020 debut long player, Ruin, FORETOKEN’s latest album sees the group expand upon their foundations of meticulously lofty soundscapes, mythological narratives, and elaborate musicianship. Utilizing traditional narratives of myths, legends, and folklore from a wide range of Western and Middle Eastern origins, Triumphs examines the ignored collateral damage of the cost of victory through these established mythos. Stories throughout Triumphs include the tale of the Persian epic poem Shahnameh, written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi (referenced in Serpent King’s Venom), Zhong Kui, the mythological Chinese King of Ghosts (Demon Queller) and Mexico’s The Weeping Woman, La Llorona (The Wraith That Weeps).

Taking musical inspiration from melodic and tech death metal, as well as power, folk and black metal, FORETOKEN’s core sound on Triumphs is bolstered by subtle and captivating use of traditionally Scandinavian, Southeast Asian, and Middle Eastern instruments for atmospheric depth within the album’s 51 minute runtime. Reunited once again with Hannes Grossmann (Hate Eternal, Alkaloid, Obscura, Necrophagist, Blotted Science, and Triptykon) on drums and boasting a guest guitar appearance by The Black Dahlia Murder’s Brandon Ellis on penultimate track A Tyrant Rises As Titans Fall, FORETOKEN’s technical prowess shines through without overpowering any of the nine songs’ rhythmic charge.

Triumphs was penned throughout 2021 by both Steve Redmond (guitar and orchestration) and Dan Cooley (vocals), with the pair settling on eight original compositions and a cover of Naglfar’s I Am Vengeance. Grossmann then commenced drum tracking at his own studio, Mordor Sounds, with guitars recorded by Redmond himself and vocals captured at Trepan Studios by Tony Petrocelly, before mixing and mastering duties were placed in the accomplished hands of Jacob Hansen (Arch Enemy, Fleshgod Apocalypse, The Black Dahlia Murder, and more) at Hansen Studios.

Visually tied together by portrait artist Tomas Honz’s detailed cover painting, depicting a protagonist’s journey in the aftermath of battle, Triumphs aesthetic component is a symbolic embodiment of the duo’s enduring fascination with historial consequence via a folkloric lens. Taking fables and fantasy to extreme sonic heights, FORETOKEN’s Triumphs is as lofty in ambition as it is accomplished in its musicianship and songcraft.

Triumphs tracklist:
1. Revenant of Valor
2. Demon Queller
3. The Wraith That Weeps
4. The Labors
5. Serpent Kings Venom
6. His Riastrad
7. Devil o’ the Sea
8. A Tyrant Rises as Titans Fall
9. I Am Vengeance (Naglfar cover)

Virginia Beach, VA blackened death metal duo FORETOKEN are currently premiering their new single, The Wraith That Weeps, via Metal Injection, along with an accompanying lyric video by Aimed&Framed. The Wraith That Weeps is the second single to be taken from FORETOKEN’s upcoming sophomore album, Triumphs, which will be released via Prosthetic Records on March 17.

LISTEN TO THE WRAITH THAT WEEPS AND WATCH THE LYRIC VIDEO VIA METAL INJECTION HERE.
The Wraith That Weeps will be on all streaming platforms on Friday, February 10.

Speaking on the track premiere, Steve Redmond (guitar and orchestration) comments: “For this song I tried to channel my death and tech-death roots to create something dark and complex. Having Hannes Grossmann on drums really allowed me push the music to be more extreme at times and I think this track is a good example of that.”

Vocalist, Dan Cooley adds: “We’re really happy with how this song turned out as it showcases one of the things we try push in our songs, which is storytelling. The use of classical guitar and blackened death metal rhythms created an excellent canvas for us to bring a haunting story about La Llorna, The Weeping Woman, to life.”

Following their 2020 debut long player, Ruin, FORETOKEN’s latest album sees the group expand upon their foundations of meticulously lofty soundscapes, mythological narratives, and elaborate musicianship. Utilizing traditional narratives of myths, legends, and folklore from a wide range of Western and Middle Eastern origins, Triumphs examines the ignored collateral damage of the cost of victory through these established mythos.

Taking musical inspiration from melodic and tech death metal, as well as power, folk and black metal, FORETOKEN’s core sound on Triumphs is bolstered by subtle and captivating use of traditionally Scandinavian, Southeast Asian, and Middle Eastern instruments for atmospheric depth within the album’s 51 minute runtime. Reunited once again with Hannes Grossmann (Hate Eternal, Alkaloid, Obscura, Necrophagist, Blotted Science, and Triptykon) on drums and boasting a guest guitar appearance by The Black Dahlia Murder’s Brandon Ellis on penultimate track A Tyrant Rises As Titans Fall, FORETOKEN’s technical prowess shines through without overpowering any of the nine songs’ rhythmic charge.

Triumphs was penned throughout 2021 by both Steve Redmond (guitar and orchestration) and Dan Cooley (vocals), with the pair settling on eight original compositions and a cover of Naglfar’s I Am Vengeance. Grossmann then commenced drum tracking at his own studio, Mordor Sounds, with guitars recorded by Redmond himself and vocals captured at Trepan Studios by Tony Petrocelly, before mixing and mastering duties were placed in the accomplished hands of Jacob Hansen (Arch Enemy, Fleshgod Apocalypse, The Black Dahlia Murder, and more) at Hansen Studios.

Visually tied together by portrait artist Tomas Honz’s detailed cover painting, depicting a protagonist’s journey in the aftermath of battle, Triumphs aesthetic component is a symbolic embodiment of the duo’s enduring fascination with historial consequence via a folkloric lens. Taking fables and fantasy to extreme sonic heights, FORETOKEN’s Triumphs is as lofty in ambition as it is accomplished in its musicianship and songcraft.

Triumphs tracklist:
1. Revenant of Valor
2. Demon Queller
3. The Wraith That Weeps
4. The Labors
5. Serpent Kings Venom
6. His Riastrad
7. Devil o’ the Sea
8. A Tyrant Rises as Titans Fall
9. I Am Vengeance (Naglfar cover)

FORETOKEN is:
Dan Cooley – vocals
Steve Redmond – guitar and orchestration
Hannes Grossmann – drums (recording only)

Virginia Beach, VA blackened death metal duo FORETOKEN have today announced their second album, Triumphs, set for release via Prosthetic Records on March 17. Alongside the announcement, the band has shared lead single, Demon Queller, with an accompanying visualizer by Aimed&Framed.

Stream Demon Queller via Apple Music | TIDAL | Deezer | Bandcamp and Spotify
Pre-order Triumphs here.

Speaking on the album announcement, Dan Cooley (vocals) comments: “We’re really excited to announce Triumphs! This has lived in our heads since we began writing the album in early 2021. We pushed ourselves to improve on everything from songwriting, to musicianship, and storytelling. It’s a juggernaut of an experience that we hope people enjoy listening to as much as we did writing it”

Steve Redmond (guitar and orchestration) adds: “We’re super stoked for everyone to hear the album. We had a blast making it and we hope everyone has just as much fun listening to it. While we want the listener to be immersed in the myths and legends referenced on this album, there is also a human element to these songs I think we can all relate to. For the first single we wanted an energetic track that represents a preview of the album as a whole and we think Demon Queller fills that role.”

Following their 2020 debut long player, Ruin, FORETOKEN’s latest album sees the group expand upon their foundations of meticulously lofty soundscapes, mythological narratives, and elaborate musicianship. Utilizing traditional narratives of myths, legends, and folklore from a wide range of Western and Middle Eastern origins, Triumphs examines the ignored collateral damage of the cost of victory through these established mythos.

Taking musical inspiration from melodic and tech death metal, as well as power, folk and black metal, FORETOKEN’s core sound on Triumphs is bolstered by subtle and captivating use of traditionally Scandinavian, Southeast Asian, and Middle Eastern instruments for atmospheric depth within the album’s 51 minute runtime. Reunited once again with Hannes Grossmann (Hate Eternal, Alkaloid, Obscura, Necrophagist, Blotted Science, and Triptykon) on drums and boasting a guest guitar appearance by The Black Dahlia Murder’s Brandon Ellis on penultimate track A Tyrant Rises As Titans Fall, FORETOKEN’s technical prowess shines through without overpowering any of the nine songs’ rhythmic charge.

Triumphs was penned throughout 2021 by both Steve Redmond (guitar and orchestration) and Dan Cooley (vocals), with the pair settling on eight original compositions and a cover of Naglfar’s I Am Vengeance. Grossmann then commenced drum tracking at his own studio, Mordor Sounds, with guitars recorded by Redmond himself and vocals captured at Trepan Studios by Tony Petrocelly, before mixing and mastering duties were placed in the accomplished hands of Jacob Hansen (Arch Enemy, Fleshgod Apocalypse, The Black Dahlia Murder, and more) at Hansen Studios.

Visually tied together by portrait artist Tomas Honz’s detailed cover painting, depicting a protagonist’s journey in the aftermath of battle, Triumphs aesthetic component is a symbolic embodiment of the duo’s enduring fascination with historial consequence via a folkloric lens. Taking fables and fantasy to extreme sonic heights, FORETOKEN’s Triumphs is as lofty in ambition as it is accomplished in its musicianship and songcraft.

Triumphs tracklist:
1. Revenant of Valor
2. Demon Queller
3. The Wraith That Weeps
4. The Labors
5. Serpent Kings Venom
6. His Riastrad
7. Devil o’ the Sea
8. A Tyrant Rises as Titans Fall
9. I Am Vengeance (Naglfar cover)

FORETOKEN is:
Dan Cooley – vocals
Steve Redmond – guitar and orchestration
Hannes Grossmann – drums (recording only)